113 SRES 167 IS: Reaffirming the strong support of the United States for the peaceful resolution of territorial, sovereignty, and jurisdictional disputes in the Asia-Pacific maritime domains.U.S. Senate2013-06-10text/xmlENPursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.III113th CONGRESS1st SessionS. RES. 167IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATESJune 10, 2013Mr. Menendez (for
himself, Mr. Rubio, and
Mr. Cardin) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign
RelationsRESOLUTIONReaffirming the strong support of the
United States for the peaceful resolution of territorial, sovereignty, and
jurisdictional disputes in the Asia-Pacific maritime domains.Whereas the maritime domain of the Asia-Pacific region
includes critical sea lines of communication and commerce between the Pacific
and Indian oceans;Whereas the United States has a national interest in
freedom of navigation and overflight in the Asia-Pacific maritime domains, as
provided for by universally recognized principles of international law;Whereas the United States has a national interest in the
maintenance of peace and stability, open access by all to maritime domains,
respect for universally recognized principles of international law, prosperity
and economic growth, and unimpeded lawful commerce;Whereas the United States has a clear interest in
encouraging and supporting the nations of the region to work collaboratively
and diplomatically to resolve disputes without coercion, without intimidation,
without threats, and without the use of force;Whereas the South China Sea contains great natural
resources, and their stewardship and responsible use offers immense potential
benefit for generations to come;Whereas, in recent years, there have been numerous
dangerous and destabilizing incidents in this region, including Chinese vessels
cutting the seismic survey cables of a Vietnamese oil exploration ship in May
2011; Chinese vessels barricading the entrance to the Scarborough Reef lagoon
in April 2012; China issuing an official map that newly defines the contested
nine-dash line as China's national border; and, since May 8, 2013,
Chinese naval and marine surveillance ships maintaining a regular presence in
waters around the Second Thomas Shoal, located approximately 105 nautical miles
northwest of the Philippine island of Palawan;Whereas the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
has promoted multilateral talks on disputed areas without settling the issue of
sovereignty, and in 2002 joined with China in signing a Declaration on the
Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea that committed all parties to those
territorial disputes to reaffirm their respect for and commitment to the
freedom of navigation in and over flight above the South China Sea as provided
for by the universally recognized principles of international law and
to resolve their territorial and jurisdictional disputes by peaceful
means, without resorting to the threat or use of force;Whereas Japan and Taiwan reached an agreement on April 10,
2013, to jointly share and administer the fishing resources in their
overlapping claimed exclusive economic zones in the East China Sea, an
important breakthrough after 17 years of negotiations and a model for other
such agreements;Whereas other incidences of the joint administrations of
resources in disputed waters in the South China Sea have de-escalated tensions
and promoted economic development, such as Malaysia and Brunei’s 2009 agreement
to partner on exploring offshore Brunei waters, with drilling in offshore oil
and gas fields off Brunei beginning in 2011; and Thailand and Vietnam's
agreement to jointly develop areas of the Gulf of Thailand for gas exports,
despite ongoing territorial disputes;Whereas the Government of the Republic of the Philippines
states that it has exhausted almost all political and diplomatic avenues
for a peaceful negotiated settlement of its maritime dispute with China
and in his statement of January 23, 2013, Republic of Philippines Secretary of
Foreign Affairs Del Rosario stated that therefore the Philippines has
taken the step of bringing China before the Arbitral Tribunal under Article 287
and Annex VII of the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea in order to achieve
a peaceful and durable solution to the dispute;Whereas, in January 2013, a Chinese naval ship allegedly
fixed its weapons-targeting radar on Japanese vessels in the vicinity of the
Senkaku islands, and, on April 23, 2013, eight Chinese marine surveillance
ships entered the 12-nautical-mile territorial zone off the Senkaku Islands,
further escalating regional tensions;Whereas, on May 8, 2013, the Chinese Communist Party’s
main newspaper, The People’s Daily, published an article by several Chinese
scholars questioning Japan’s sovereignty over Okinawa, where key United States
military installations are located which contribute to preserving security and
stability in the Asia-Pacific region;Whereas the Government of the People’s Republic of China
has recently taken other unilateral steps, including declaring the Senkaku
Islands a core interest, improperly drawing baselines
around the Senkaku Islands in September 2102, which the 2013 Annual Report to
Congress on Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic
of China found to be “inconsistent with international law”, and maintaining a
continuous military and paramilitary presence around the Senkaku
Islands;Whereas, although the United States does not take a
position on the ultimate sovereignty of the Senkaku Islands, the United States
Government acknowledges that they are under the administration of Japan and
opposes any unilateral actions that would seek to undermine such
administration, affirms that the unilateral actions of a third party will not
affect the United States acknowledgment of the administration of Japan over the
Senkaku Islands, remains committed under the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and
Security to respond to any armed attack in the territories under the
administration of Japan, and has urged all parties to take steps to prevent
incidents and manage disagreements through peaceful means;Whereas, on August 3, 2012, a Department of State
spokesperson expressed concern over China’s upgrading of the
administrative level of Sansha City and the establishment of a new military
garrison there, encouraged ASEAN and China to make meaningful
progress toward finalizing a comprehensive Code of Conduct, and called
upon claimants to explore every diplomatic or other peaceful avenue for
resolution, including the use of arbitration or other international legal
mechanisms as needed;Whereas the United States recognizes the importance of
strong, cohesive, and integrated regional institutions, including the East Asia
Summit (EAS), ASEAN, and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, as
foundation for effective regional frameworks to promote peace and security and
economic growth, including in the maritime domain, and to ensure that the
Asia-Pacific community develops rules-based regional norms which discourage
coercion and the use of force;Whereas the United States welcomes the development of a
peaceful and prosperous China, the government of which respects international
norms, international laws, international institutions, and international rules;
enhances security and peace; and seeks to advance a new model of
relations between the United States and China; andWhereas ASEAN plays an important role, in partnership with
others in the regional and international community, in addressing maritime
security issues in the Asia-Pacific region and into the Indian Ocean, including
open access to the maritime domain of Asia: Now, therefore, be itThat the Senate—(1)condemns the use
of coercion, threats, or force by naval, maritime security, or fishing vessels
and military or civilian aircraft in the South China Sea and the East China Sea
to assert disputed maritime or territorial claims or alter the status
quo;(2)strongly urges
that all parties to maritime and territorial disputes in the region exercise
self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would undermine stability or
complicate or escalate disputes, including refraining from inhabiting presently
un­in­hab­it­ed islands, reefs, shoals, and other features and handle their
differences in a constructive manner;(3)reaffirms the
strong support of the United States for the member states of ASEAN and the
Government of the People’s Republic of China as they seek to develop a code of
conduct of parties in the South China Sea, and urges all countries to
substantively support ASEAN in its efforts in this regard;(4)supports
collaborative diplomatic processes by all claimants in the South China Sea for
resolving outstanding maritime or territorial disputes, in a manner that
maintains peace and security, adheres to international law, and protects
unimpeded lawful commerce as well as freedom of navigation and overflight, and
including through international arbitration, allowing parties to peacefully
settle claims and disputes using universally recognized principles of
international law;(5)encourages the
deepening of efforts by the United States Government to develop partnerships
with other countries in the region for maritime domain awareness and capacity
building; and(6)supports the
continuation of operations by the United States Armed Forces in the Western
Pacific, including in partnership with the armed forces of other countries in
the region, in support of freedom of navigation, the maintenance of peace and
stability, and respect for universally recognized principles of international
law, including the peaceful resolution of issues of sovereignty and unimpeded
lawful commerce.